Home Health & Hospice Week

Pressure ulcer measure mandatory in new year.

At least some of the industry’s concerns about a new home health quality measure have been allayed by the 2016 HH PPS final rule.

In the July 10 proposed rule, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services proposed adding “NQF #0678 Percent of Residents or Patients with Pressure Ulcers that are New or Worsened (Short Stay)” for use in the home health quality reporting program in 2016.

HHAs started collecting data for this measure in 2015, and now data collected in 2016 will impact agencies’ 2018 payments and later, CMS finalizes in the rule. The measure will fulfill IMPACT act requirements for cross-setting measures.

While many commenters were supportive of the idea, some were not happy about the possible inclusion of a new M item for height and weight for the measure (see Eli’s HCW, Vol. XXIV, No. 38).

“There will be instances in which obtaining height and weight cannot occur, and coding response options will be available in order to indicate when such data cannot be obtained,” CMS reassures in the final rule. “We intend to issue specific guidance through the OASIS manual on obtaining these data, including a definition of ‘base weight.’”